The human eye is extremely sensitive to dust and other small foreign objects. When such materials inadvertently come into contact with the eyes, they usually quickly become quite irritated. One commonly accepted method of alleviating this condition is to apply a mild liquid medicant to the eyes, which medicant is usually referred to as an eyewash. In other instances, in the case of eye irritation, eye strain and the like, it is also the usual practice to apply liquid medicants, usually by employing an eyedropper.
At the present time, it is necessary when dropping medicine into one's own eyes, to hold the head back and then drop the liquid medicines into the eyes from a dropper or dispenser bottle which is supported solely by the user's hand. Such a means of self-administering drops to one's eyes has the disadvantage that it is difficult to hold the hand steady enough to always drop the medicine at just the right place. Frequently, the hand may move sufficiently, as the dropper bulb or the dispenser bottle is being squeezed, to cause the lower end of the dropper to move from a position in registry over the eye, so that when the droplet of medicine separates from the dispenser, it may drop onto the face area adjacent to the eye instead of directly into the eye where it is needed.
Additionally, another particularly annoying problem or difficulty arises when self-applying an eyewash or other liquid to the eyes. That is, it is usually difficult to maintain the eyelids in an open position during the application of the liquid medicant.